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Connect Claude to SynContext

Connect Claude to your SynContext account. OAuth is the preferred path for OAuth-capable Claude connector flows; API-key configuration remains available for Claude Desktop, Claude Code, and manual clients.

Prerequisites

  • A SynContext account (create one)
  • For API-key fallback methods, your SynContext API key from the dashboard

Method 1: Claude.ai (Web, OAuth)

For the Claude web interface at claude.ai, use the remote MCP URL without an API key. Claude discovers SynContext's protected resource metadata, registers dynamically, uses PKCE S256, and redirects you through SynContext login/consent.

Steps

  1. Open claude.ai
  2. Go to a Project (or create one)
  3. Open Project Settings → Integrations (or MCP Servers)
  4. Click Add MCP Server
  5. Enter the URL: https://syncontext.dev/mcp
  6. Complete the SynContext login and consent flow when prompted
  7. Save and start a new conversation in that project

Verify

Ask Claude: List all my projects in SynContext

Claude should call the hub_list_projects tool and show your projects. If your Claude surface does not offer OAuth connector setup, use the API-key fallback methods below.

Method 2: Claude Desktop

For the Claude Desktop app (macOS/Windows).

Prerequisites

  • Claude Desktop installed
  • Node.js installed (for npx — download here)

Steps

  1. Open Claude Desktop
  2. Go to Settings → Developer → Edit Config (or find claude_desktop_config.json)
  3. macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
  4. Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json
  5. Add the SynContext server:
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "syncontext": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "mcp-remote",
        "https://syncontext.dev/mcp",
        "--header",
        "X-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY"
      ]
    }
  }
}
  1. Replace YOUR_API_KEY with your actual API key
  2. Save the file and restart Claude Desktop

Verify

After restarting, you should see a hammer icon (tools) in the chat input area. Click it to see the SynContext MCP tools listed.

Ask Claude: Search my SynContext for anything

Troubleshooting

  • "npx not found" — Install Node.js from nodejs.org and restart your terminal
  • Tools don't appear — Check the JSON syntax carefully (missing commas, wrong brackets). Restart Claude Desktop after any config change.
  • "Connection refused" — Verify the URL uses https:// not http://

Method 3: Claude Code (CLI)

For the Claude Code command-line tool.

Steps

Run this command in your terminal:

claude mcp add syncontext --transport http https://syncontext.dev/mcp --header "X-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY"

Replace YOUR_API_KEY with your actual API key.

Verify

Start a Claude Code session and ask:

List my SynContext projects

Troubleshooting

  • "transport error" — Verify the URL and API key are correct
  • Tools not available — Run claude mcp list to verify syncontext is registered
  • Remove and re-add — claude mcp remove syncontext then add again

Available tools

Once connected, Claude can access 21 MCP tools:

Group Tools
Core (10) search, fetch, hub_list_projects, hub_get_project, hub_store_context, hub_update_context, hub_update_status, hub_log_decision, hub_get_decisions, hub_export_project
GitHub (6) hub_github_repos, hub_github_tree, hub_github_read, hub_github_search, hub_github_commits, hub_github_create_pr
War Room (5) hub_create_war_room, hub_post_war_message, hub_read_war_room, hub_resolve_war_room, hub_list_war_rooms

See the full API Reference for parameters and examples.

Cross-client sync

If you also connect another MCP-compatible client, such as ChatGPT where MCP Apps are available:

  1. Store context from Claude: Store in SynContext project "shared": Title: "Test", Content: "Hello from Claude"
  2. Open the other connected client and ask: Search my SynContext for "Hello from Claude"
  3. The other client finds the entry Claude stored — sync confirmed

Marketplace reviewer runbook

For marketplace review, use the seeded reviewer tenant rather than a personal account.

  • Login URL: https://syncontext.dev/app/#/login
  • Reviewer email: [email protected]
  • Password handling: the password is supplied out-of-band through REVIEWER_PASSWORD or an approved secure channel. Do not commit, paste, or store reviewer passwords in repo files or SynContext entries.
  • Seeded project: reviewer-demo
  • Admin reset command shape: REVIEWER_PASSWORD=<secret> python -m scripts.seed_reviewer_tenant --email [email protected] --project-id reviewer-demo
  • Optional credential print for the operator only: add --print-credentials when running locally and keep the output out of git/SynContext.

Connect test:

  1. Sign in to the reviewer account.
  2. Connect Claude with https://syncontext.dev/mcp through OAuth, or use the API-key fallback only if the client surface lacks OAuth setup.
  3. Ask Claude: List my SynContext projects.
  4. Confirm reviewer-demo appears, then ask Claude to search or fetch the seeded sample context.

For more issues, see the full Troubleshooting Guide.